Biochemists and cell biologists, who are interested in membranes, tend to regard the human red blood cell ambivalently. On one hand, red blood cells lack nuclei and the various intracellular organelles, yet that are highly specialized for a particular respiratory function. On the other hand, the human red blood cell presents an excellent model for membrane transport function.

The generation of cultured red blood cells from stem cell sources may fill an unmet clinical need for transfusion-dependent patients, particularly in countries that lack a sufficient and safe blood supply. Cultured red blood cells were generated from human CD34+ cells from adult peripheral blood or cord blood by ex vivo expansion, and a comprehensive in vivo survival comparison with standard re...